Commercial and consumer absorbent products such as shop towels, nonwoven fabrics, wipers, toilet tissue and paper towels are often distributed and dispensed in roll format. Most products in this format include a cylindrical core at the center of the roll and the product is wrapped about the core. Most roll format product dispensers require this core to function properly. The core is usually some type of cardboard tube, plastic tube, or solid spindle which is glued to the product so that the product does not separate from the core.
Rolled product is normally loaded by mounting the roll on a spindle in a manner similar to the ubiquitous bathroom toilet roll dispenser. The spindle passes through or otherwise penetrates the inner space of the core. Some dispensers include pegs that penetrate the hollow space within the core for only a limited extent, as demonstrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 390,084 and 2,905,404 to Lane and Simmons, respectively
Recently, coreless rolls and solid rolls of products such as, for example, toilet tissue and paper towel have appeared on the market. These coreless and solid rolls are wound throughout the entire diameter of the roll. There are advantages and disadvantages associated with the coreless and solid rolls. Coreless and solid rolls are ecologically superior to cored rolls because they lack the central core made of plastic, cardboard or other material. In addition, more product can be provided in the space that would otherwise have been occupied by the core.
Cored rolls are more expensive to manufacture than coreless and solid rolls because of the expense of making the cores and joining the cores to the product. In addition, coreless and solid rolls have the advantage of being less subject to pilferage in commercial locations because of their inherent incompatibility with conventional dispensers.
On the other hand, coreless and solid roll products have dispensing problems that are difficult to overcome. Coreless and solid rolls do not fit into conventional cored roll dispensers as conventional cored roll dispensers rely on the use of a spindle integrated with the dispenser design. Additionally, it is often desired that the advantages of solid and coreless rolls be maximized by further increasing the amount of rolled material by also increasing the diameter of the solid or coreless roll. Such an increase in diameter also increases the difficulty in dispensing such rolls from existing dispensers.
The problem with the coreless roll products fitting into existing dispenser is even greater for dispensers that are partially recessed. Recessed dispensers are often found within professional workplace restrooms and other commercial settings. Such recessed dispensers reduce the degree that the diameter of the rolled product protrudes from the dispenser and partially protect the roll from the environment in which the dispenser resides. In many such recessed dispensers, the spindle lies in the dispensing cavity such that over half of the roll diameter lies within the cavity.
FIG. 1 shows an exemplary recessed dispenser 90 for roll product and illustrates features common to many existing recessed dispensers. Specifically, the dispenser 90 shown is a dispenser for rolled toilet tissue. While shown for toilet tissue, such exemplary recessed dispensers are similar in general design to recessed dispensers of other rolled products such as towels, wipers and the like. In all such dispensers, there is a recessed dispensing cavity 96 in which at least a portion of the roll diameter resides. The opening periphery 94 to the recessed dispensing cavity 96 is of a shape and size appropriate for the cored roll product being dispensed. Often, as shown in FIG. 1, the cored roll product is dispensed using a spindle, the ends of which reside in two opposing spindle guide recesses 99 that are in the side walls 97 of the dispensing cavity 96 toward the front of the dispensing cavity 96. As such, over half of the diameter of a undispensed roll of cored roll product will reside within the dispensing cavity 96 prior to dispensing. To properly dispense the cored roll product, the cavity 96 is sized so that such a roll may be contained in the recess, rotate within the cavity 96, and be dispensed therefrom.
Such recessed dispensers 90 are particularly limited in size and prevent the use of larger rolls. The dispensing cavity 96, in which a portion of the roll will reside, determines the size of roll. Additionally the dimension of the cavity 96 (i.e., depth and interior shape/clearances) may also limit roll size. This is especially true for partition mounted dispenser where the interior space is limited by the limited space available of such dispenser designs.
Adapters exist to convert cored dispensers to dispense coreless or solid rolls but none address the unique difficulties associated with using a larger than standard roll of coreless or solid roll product in a recessed dispensing cavity. Additionally, many such adapters require multi-step installation and have multiple parts which increases the complexity of the adapter and increases the number of parts that may malfunction. Finally, such adapters do not maintain the aesthetic character of the original dispenser that is being adapted.